At Procera Networks, Employees Know Where They Stand

Early in his career, James Brear had his share of bad bosses. Their negative leadership left a positive mark.

"I've worked for good and bad leaders, and I've learned what not to do from the bad ones," said Brear, now president and chief executive of Procera Networks (PKT), a Fremont, Calif.-based firm that makes equipment to help wireless carriers, broadband operators and educational institutions manage their networks and create additional revenue by deploying new subscriber-demanded services. With about 125 employees, Procera provides Deep Packet inspection technology that telecom companies use to analyze traffic on their networks and enhance service to their customers.

Brear, 46, has worked for large corporations such as IBM (IBM) and Cisco Systems (CSCO) as well as smaller firms. He joined Procera in 2008 as CEO.

No Clock Watching

A key lesson Brear took away from poor bosses is the need for clear communication. In some prior jobs, he worked in a vacuum.

"I didn't know how I was doing," he said. "I'd be a top performer but I had no idea where I stood with my boss. That creates a sense you can be replaced at any time."

As CEO, Brear engages in what he calls "constant two-way communication" to ensure his managers know exactly how they're doing. He listens respectfully and offers constructive feedback. As a result, he increases their sense of job security and alignment with Procera's needs and direction.

Brear doesn't impose rigidity on his managers. He works with them to set objectives and then steps back so they can forge their own approach and maintain a healthy work-life balance.

"I don't measure activity," Brear said. "It's all about results and delivery. If they work one hour or 100 hours, that's irrelevant."

Brear recalls how a former boss would wander the office around 6 p.m. and drop his business card on employees' vacant desks. Such controlling behavior led workers to skip dinner and act defensively rather than produce the most value.

Six-Month Priorities

Brear also learned not to dwell on long-term vision at the expense of short-term action. He sat through "long, painful meetings" in prior jobs where a head honcho would discuss lofty multiyear plans.

"You can get trapped in the paralysis of overanalyzing long-term vision," he warned. "I'd prefer that people focus on the three executable things they need to do in the next six months."

In quarterly meetings with about 10 of Procera's senior managers, Brear asks them, "If you were me, what would you do to grow the company?" They jot their answers on sticky notes and post them under headings for marketing, product development, engineering and other functional areas.

"What pops out are initiatives for the next six months," Brear said. "Whether it's 'we need to do more in channel marketing' or 'we need to revamp R&D,' we score each item from one to 10 and use that to prioritize our objectives."

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03/25/2015 06:17 PM ET

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